This is John Batchel, a conversation with Jeff Bliss' specific watch, my longtime colleague,

about the homeless story in Los Angeles.

The mayor's race is not the solution.

It would help if the mayor would take charge of challenging the homeless, which are not entirely homeless,

we're looking at deeply troubled human beings who need medical and mental health help.

However, we also have the streets filled with gangs who take advantage of the homeless people.

They take advantage of them, they turn them into convenience stores.

However, what I've learned from Jeff is that this is going to take

more than the mayor's race or the governor's race. It's going to require attention from policy

from Washington and from the health care providers of California. Here's Jeff to explain.

The homeless in Los Angeles, particularly.

More tonight.

It's a huge part of the debate.

That's one of the most visible problems that L.A. has.

You know, we can talk about the fact that Hollywood has been driven out of Hollywood. They have to take their business elsewhere because it's too expensive for them, too

restrictive.

You can talk about, you know, affordability, a host of other things.

But the number one issue again and again for many people is homelessness because it has

spread out so far and wide in the city, in the county, in the state that you can't avoid it.

You can live in some of the nicest neighborhoods as long as it's not Nithia Raman's or Karen Basses.

And it's hard to go a day without seeing homeless because the state in the city and the county make it so easy for people to be homeless in California.